New Campus for Abbey College Wednesday, 22nd June 2016

Martindales designed a new campus for Abbey College at the Homerton Business Centre located just off Hills Road, Cambridge. The main building within the campus provides the college with six floors of high quality teaching accommodation including labratories, art rooma, music and tutorial rooms, together with ensuite bedrooms for 120 students. The ground floor of the new premises houses a multi-function hall, library and a fully equipped catering kitchen with dining hall.

Located adjacent to the main railway line into Cambridge, the project provided challenges in construction methods and detailing to ensure the build did not impact the railway, and the railway did not impact the users through noise or vibration. Offsite manufacturing was used to provide the ensuites to the student bedrooms providing efficiencies in both cost and programme.

The main building is set around three sides of a landscaped courtyard providing external amenity space for the students and staff, who also benefit from three roof terraces enjoying views over the city. The courtyard is completed on the fourth side with a three storey block, also to be occupied by Abbey College, that Martindales designed to reflect the industrial history of the site and compliment the retained Rattee and Kett building next door, which we also refurbished for use by the Cambridge Cookery School.